by Travis Mateer

To understand the brief op-ed by former Missoula Redevelopment Director, Geoff Badenoch, you have to understand what Missoula’s political establishment finds so threatening about Daniel Carlino.

On his issues page, under economic justice, Carlino has this to say about “combating gentrification“:

We must allow our community members to plan for our neighborhoods, not big developers. Establishing a Citizen Oversight Committee for developments with majority renters and working-class representation and no big developers on the committee will ensure that every day Missoulians decide what kind of developments are made in our community.

Our local government must stop incentivizing big businesses to develop in Missoula by stopping the trend of giving local tax funds to corporations such as Stockman Bank or Starbucks. We must prioritize development of small, local businesses in Missoula when our community wants them and deny developments from corporations and expensive hotel or real estate companies in our town. 

Yep, that’s definitely NOT going to get you support from the Badenochs of Missoula. They want a safe enabler of TIF schemes to keep the gravy train chugging along. Of course, this sentiment won’t be explicitly stated. Instead we get language like this:

Our City faces many complex challenges and needs a City Council made up of seasoned, proven individuals who can tackle them. We need creative thinkers who are able to grasp the details and bring a depth of understanding and courage to problem-solving. 

Dori Gilels is such a person and that is why I am supporting her in her bid to represent Ward 3.

Dori is a long-time resident and neighbor in Ward 3. She knows the area and has shown through her proven history of getting things done that she will represent us and work well with others to bring solutions to the problems and opportunities we face.  

She knows our community, too, and will be a good person to work on issues facing other neighborhoods, as well as the City at large.

There is really nothing substantive in this pile of words that gives any indication what Dori actually stands for. Another Missoula establishment figure, Marilyn Marler, got into a few more details about what Dori has actually done to warrant support:

Dori earned a Master’s degree from UM and raised a Hellgate High graduate. Her diverse work history reflects her values: director of an environmental non-profit, the co-publisher of Mamalode Magazine, and volunteer board member for Mountain Home and Planned Parenthood.

She even worked in the service sector as a rafting guide.  All this experience, public service and demonstrated commitment to women, families and the environment will inform her decision making on the City Council. 

Dori makes the establishment happy. Daniel makes them nervous. In fact, Daniel Carlino has made the political establishment in Missoula SO nervous that they tried taking him out early via a Koostra attack. Here’s a link to the post where I broke the story that Carlino’s rental lease was terminated by former UM art museum director and current litigant against The Bod, Barbara Koostra.

If Daniel Carlino wants to actually win this race, and not just get tossed around by the political establishment, he should grow a pair and get more assertive about the attacks he’s sustained.

I don’t see that happening, but it’s certainly entertaining to watch.

Thanks for reading.